{"meta":{"version":"2.1","_links":{"self":{"href":"https://api.vam.ac.uk/v2/object/O181004"},"collection_page":{"href":"https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O181004/"}},"images":{"_primary_thumbnail":"https://framemark.vam.ac.uk/collections/2011FB2852/full/!100,100/0/default.jpg","_iiif_image":"https://framemark.vam.ac.uk/collections/2011FB2852/","_alt_iiif_image":[],"imageResolution":"high","_images_meta":[{"assetRef":"2011FB2852","copyright":"© Victoria and Albert Museum, London","sensitiveImage":false},{"assetRef":"2011FB2814","copyright":"© Victoria and Albert Museum, London","sensitiveImage":false},{"assetRef":"2011FB2824","copyright":"© Victoria and Albert Museum, London","sensitiveImage":false},{"assetRef":"2018KV7586","copyright":"© Victoria and Albert Museum, London","sensitiveImage":false},{"assetRef":"2018KV7585","copyright":"© Victoria and Albert Museum, London","sensitiveImage":false}]},"see_also":{"_iiif_pres":"https://iiif.vam.ac.uk/collections/O181004/manifest.json","_alt_iiif_pres":[]}},"record":{"systemNumber":"O181004","accessionNumber":"A.3-1956","objectType":"Statuette","titles":[{"title":"Allegory of Sickness","type":"generic title"}],"summaryDescription":"This small boxwood figure, an allegory of sickness, was probably carved in Ulm in South Germany in the mid-seventeenth century by David Heschler (1611-1667), who worked in both wood and ivory. The distressed long-haired figure half-walks forward and half-falls, semi-nude, draped in a loose classicising cloak, his left arm raised to his breast and his mouth half-open as if crying out, revealing his missing teeth. The cat on his shoulder was believed to draw off sickness, and the snake wrapped round his thigh recalls the fact that snake's venom was thought to heal gout and rheumatism. The vomiting and excreting dog at his feet allegorises the expulsion of sickness. The myriad details of this sort dispersed right around the figure encourage the viewer to turn it in their hands, examining it closely.","physicalDescription":"The distressed long-haired figure half-walks forward and half-falls, semi-nude, draped in a loose classicising cloak, his left arm to his breast and his mouth half-open as if crying out, revealing his missing teeth. The cat on his shoulder was believed to draw off sickness, and the snake wrapped round his thigh recalls the fact that snake's venom was thought to heal gout and rheumatism. The vomiting and excreting dog at his feet allegorises the expulsion of sickness.","artistMakerPerson":[{"name":{"text":"Heschler, David","id":"A24125"},"association":{"text":"probably","id":"THES285218"},"note":""}],"artistMakerOrganisations":[],"artistMakerPeople":[],"materials":[{"text":"boxwood","id":"AAT12002"}],"techniques":[{"text":"carving","id":"AAT53149"}],"materialsAndTechniques":"Carved boxwood","categories":[{"text":"Sculpture","id":"THES48896"}],"styles":[],"collectionCode":{"text":"SCP","id":"THES48600"},"images":["2011FB2852","2011FB2814","2011FB2824","2018KV7586","2018KV7585"],"imageResolution":"high","galleryLocations":[{"current":{"text":"6","id":"THES49750"},"free":"","case":"CA13","shelf":"","box":""}],"partTypes":[[{"text":"Statuette","id":""}]],"contentWarnings":[{"apprise":"","note":""}],"placesOfOrigin":[{"place":{"text":"Ulm","id":"x35240"},"association":{"text":"made","id":"x28654"},"note":""}],"productionDates":[{"date":{"text":"ca. 1640 - ca. 1650","earliest":"1635-01-01","latest":"1654-12-31"},"association":{"text":"made","id":"x28654"},"note":""}],"associatedObjects":[],"creditLine":"","dimensions":[{"dimension":"Height","value":"20","unit":"cm","qualifier":"","date":{"text":"","earliest":null,"latest":null},"part":"","note":""},{"dimension":"Diameter","value":"7","unit":"cm","qualifier":"","date":{"text":"20/06/2012","earliest":"2012-06-20","latest":"2012-06-20"},"part":"Across the base","note":""}],"dimensionsNote":"","marksAndInscriptions":[],"objectHistory":"Bought from Mr Philip Mayer 10 Fawley Road, London NW6 for £500, in 1956. Formerly attributed to Georg Petel (1601/2-1633/4), and subsequently thought to be South Netherlandish, this figure was convincingly reattributed to Heschler by Christian Theuerkauff in 2000.","historicalContext":"","briefDescription":"Statuette, boxwood, Allegory of Sickness, by David Heschler, Germany (Ulm), ca.1640-1650","bibliographicReferences":[{"reference":{"text":"","id":""},"details":"","free":"K. Feuchtmayer and A. Schadler, 'Georg Petel 1601/2-1633/4' Berlin, 1973, cat. no. 101 on pp. 163 ff."},{"reference":{"text":"","id":""},"details":"","free":"C. Theuerkauff, 'David Heschler 1611-1667', 'Weltkunst', no. 10, 15 September 2000, p. 1707 (ill.)."},{"reference":{"text":"Müller, Theodor & Schädler, Alfred, <i>Georg Petel, 1601-1634</i>, München : Hirmer, 1964.","id":"AUTH357869"},"details":"","free":""}],"production":"","productionType":{"text":"","id":""},"contentDescription":"","contentPlaces":[],"associatedPlaces":[],"contentPerson":[],"associatedPerson":[],"contentOrganisations":[],"associatedOrganisations":[],"contentPeople":[],"associatedPeople":[],"contentEvents":[],"associatedEvents":[],"contentOthers":[{"text":"Dog","id":"x30186"},{"text":"cat","id":"x30168"},{"text":"snake","id":"x30204"},{"text":"man","id":"x35641"}],"contentConcepts":[{"text":"Sickness","id":"AAT189799"}],"contentLiteraryRefs":[],"galleryLabels":[{"text":"ALLEGORY OF SICKNESS\r\nGerman, Ulm; around 1640\r\nBoxwood\r\nAttributed to David Heschler\r\n\r\nThis figure represents sickness, and more specifically symbolises a cure for gout. The cat was believed to draw sickness off, while the snake’s venom was thought to heal gout and rheumatism. The vomiting and excreting of the dog is dramatic allegory of the expulsion of illness.\r\n","date":{"text":"1993 - 2011","earliest":"1993-01-01","latest":"2011-12-31"}}],"partNumbers":["A.3-1956"],"accessionNumberNum":"3","accessionNumberPrefix":"A","accessionYear":1956,"otherNumbers":[],"copyNumber":"","aspects":["WHOLE"],"assets":["2019LW0465"],"recordModificationDate":"2025-04-09","recordCreationDate":"2008-12-30","availableToBook":false}}